Hundreds Protest Aid Agencies in Rakhine

Local ethnic Rakhine call on the government to improve security on Sunday. / San Paw / The Irrawaddy

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By Reuters 14 August 2017

YANGON — Hundreds of Buddhists took to the streets in Rakhine State on Sunday to protest against aid organizations they accuse of giving support to Muslim Rohingya militants, police and a protest leader said.

Buddhist monks and members of the Rakhine ethnic group held demonstrations in 15 towns, including the Rakhine state capital of Sittwe, demanding that aid agencies leave the western state immediately, Htay Aung, a self-described leader of the protests, told Reuters by phone.

“We will protest again and again until we get our demands. If the government fails to act, that is their responsibility,” he said.

Tensions have risen once again in Rakhine since seven Buddhists were found hacked to death in the mountains in the north of the state in July.

The government said it had discovered forest encampments that proved Muslim “extremists” were responsible for the killings, and the military sent additional forces to the area this week.

At one suspected militant camp last month, biscuits originating from the United Nations’ World Food Programme were discovered. Ethnic Rakhine Buddhists have long accused U.N. and other aid organisations of favouring the Rohingya with aid.

Crackdown

The state was plunged into violence in October, when Rohingya insurgents killed nine border police, sparking a crackdown in which government security forces were accused of raping, killing and torturing Rohingya civilians.

About 1.1 million Rohingya Muslims live in Rakhine, but are denied citizenship and face restrictions on their movements and access to basic services. About 120,000 remain in camps set up after deadly violence swept the state in 2012, where they rely on aid agencies for basic provisions.